Don't quote me on this for sure, but I do not believe it is legal to use slingshots to hunt turkeys with.  As for getting somewhere to hunt without other hunters and guns, good luck.  Most of the private land is spoken for.  You can always knock on doors, but I am not sure how far it'll get you.

Depending on how much you want to pay, there is a hunt club out there that allows one deer, three turkeys, and unlimited , quail, dove, camping and fishing whenver you want.  It's called "My Country Club", and depending on what package you want, it will cost anywhere from $3500 to $5500 for a year.  A singel membership is the cheapest, obviously, and then you can add family members for more.  From what I have heard, it's an awesome place.  But, I just can't justify spending that money, so I fight with the other guys on public ground.

Welcome to the board and good luck!

Just a few things that you need to consider.  One is do they have a permit to hunt turkeys?  If not and they get caught it may leed to some hefty fines since a turkey is a protected bird.  Also I doubt that a sling shot is leagle and yes you could kill one with it. 

My suggestion is for you to contact the California Fish and Game to find out just what is leagal and what is not before trying to hunt a protected bird or animal. 

The first two replies summed things up pretty well, but I will add a couple of points. 

1. Makes sure a sling shot is a legal weapon.  Look up the game and fish website and they usually tell you right on there what weapons are legal.  Like the others I doubt sling shots are legal.

2. If the boys are interested in hunting, then have them take a hunter safety course.  This will provide them both an introduction into hunting and an education on how to do it safely and legally.  The other thing is that it will introduce you to people who can guide you in hunting.  Hunters are always willing to share and mentor people, especially our youth.

3. Go to a local sporting goods store or download a turkey target from the internet and set it 20 feet away from the boys and see if they can even hit the head with the slingshot.  Assuming that it is legal and again I doubt that it is, a hit to the body is not going to kill the turkey.  It will only inflict injury and pain and we don't want that.

Good luck and feel free to ask more questions.

I commend you in wanting to take the kids hunting.  There really is no better activity for future adults to get into to develop characteristics and attitudes that will help them later in life.  BUT, in order to hunt you kinda have to use a weapon.  While the kids are signing up for hunter education classes you should sign up as well.  Learn to respect and enjoy guns and realize that fear and ignorance of guns is infinitely more dangerous than knowledge and proper use.  I seem to recall a story in the Bible about a sling shot being used to good effect.  In the right hands or in the worst of coincidences they can be as deadly as a gun.

Welcome to the site and good luck in the outdoors!

I think the idea of you getting your boys and you enrolled in a hunter education class is the best one thrown out there so far. First of all, it sounds like you guys are new to this and the class is going to give you guys the basics that you will need. Plus it is required in order to hunt most places anyways. As others have said, there is no better activity for a father or mother to bond with their children than hunting. So it is great that you are trying to get them into it, I just think you need to go about doing it in the right way. Do not try and rush into it by getting them out there before they are ready. Get yourself signed up for the class, pass it, get your boys some sensible firearms and take them out in the spring for a spring hunt. It will be much better then anyways.